PARCC Needs to Drop the Second "C"

So, we all know that  "PARCC" - which recently voted to shorten its tests in time and limit it to only one testing window each year - stands for the "Partnership for Assessing Readiness for College & Career." And, that second "C" is really the problem. For, these tests, which along with the SmarterBalanced (buttery spread) program, are supposed to test readiness for college and career ... for students in grades 3 through 11. And, there is no logical way to argue that a standardized test that is basically bubbling in answers for math and reading passages (despite claims it's not a bubble test , or is better than previous bubble tests) can accurately predict and assess "readiness" for "careers." The reality is these tests are completely focused on narrow academic pursuits. They may assess readiness for university study in the same way the ACT and SAT do. But, these tests do not assess "readiness" for countless careers. From retail sales to cosmetology to skilled labor to contracting to culinary arts and other service industry professions, the reading of passages and explaining how to "solve for y" is not an valid measurement of "readiness."

So, drop the second "C," PARCC.